The mud barge had not been in use for some years. It was an old type of barge and had been towed down to reclaimed ground near the coal hoist. As one of the square tanks was being removed the man's body was found floating in the well.

The body was in an advanced state of decomposition and was thought to have been in the water for some months. His right hand and left foot were missing. He had been wearing a blue tweed suit that had decayed in the water. He had a worn black boot on his right foot. There was nothing on him to identify him but in his pockets they did find the front glass of a cycle lamp, a pocket knife, a small piece of rubber and a little bit of pencil.

The barge was an old type of sea going vessel that had been obtained by a trust and had been lying for a number of years in the Earl Grey Dock close to the Unicorn. Although they were obsolete the Trust had a use for them and on the high tide they were towed from their birth by the crane barge Charles Barrie to the reclaimed ground.

It was thought that he might have fallen into the barge when it was in the Earl Grey Dock and then been towed down.

*map pointers are rough estimates based on known location details as per Place field above.